


Cursed

by Wildjinx



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, M/M, Minor Character Death, Porn With Plot, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-06
Updated: 2014-03-06
Packaged: 2018-01-14 20:31:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1277980
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wildjinx/pseuds/Wildjinx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Getting the wizard to lift the curse he placed on the village isn’t going to be an easy task.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written for the Kai LiveJournal fanfic exchange ForJongin.

Jongin has never fit in with the rest of the village and he’s not naïve enough to think that doing a stupid dare will ever do anything to change that. However he’s still young enough to hope that it will. Jongin takes another step forward.  
  
He keeps moving further and further away from the last row of birch trees at the edge of the forest. An old mansion lies in the distance and beyond that the ocean stretches on for as far as the eye can see. Another step takes Jongin into the field of wildflowers just outside of the forest. This is the furthest he’s ever been away from the village before. This is the closest anyone has ever been to the mansion in over a hundred years.  
  
It’s forbidden for any of the villagers to go near the mansion. Jongin knows it’s wrong but it’s his need to belong that keeps pulling him towards that house. Jongin takes another step forward.  
  
  
  
The house looks much bigger (and a lot creepier) now that Jongin’s actually standing right in front of it. Vines have covered up most of the building, the leaves so thick that he can barely tell what colour the walls are supposed to be. There’s a sinking feeling in Jongin’s stomach when he hovers his foot over the first step to the porch and the thought of this being a _really bad idea_ flashes through his mind. Or that just might be because he afraid that the stairs are too old and worn to hold up his weight anymore. He cautiously adds a bit of pressure and fortunately it seems sturdy enough.  
  
The front door is unlocked so Jongin just lets himself in. It’s dark inside, the windows barely letting any light through because they clearly haven’t been cleaned in about fifty years. Once fully inside, the feeling that that someone watching him sends a chill up his spine.  
  
 _You’re not afraid,_ he tells himself. There’s probably hasn’t been anyone living here in years. It’s just a story the villagers tell to their children to keep them away from playing inside a house that looks like it’s about to collapse at any second. _There’s no one else here._  
  
After a minute or two, his eyes have adjusted to the light a bit more and it’s a little easier to see. As quietly as he can, Jongin makes his way down the hall looking for anything small enough to bring back to the boys as proof that he went inside the mansion. Unfortunately all the rooms he finds are empty save for a thick layer of dirt and dust.  
  
A creaking coming from behind Jongin catches him off guard and he goes completely still, heart beating loudly in his chest. It could be an animal, bunnies or squirrels could have made this place their home. Or maybe it’s just the noises that really old buildings make sometimes.  
  
“Who are you?” A deep voice asks from out of nowhere. Jongin spins around on his heel, looking for whoever’s talking to him but he finds no one else in the room with him. He tries to convince himself that he’s hearing things. There hasn’t been anyone living here in _years_. But then softly, almost as if it’s whispered directly into Jongin’s ear, “What are you doing in my house?”  
  
Jongin almost jumps out of his own skin in a panic and he bolts out of the room, down the hall and back out through the front door. The sun has started to set but he’s thankful there’s still enough light to see where he’s going. He jumps down the stairs and races across the field of wildflowers. He only stops to catch his breath when he makes it to the first line of birch trees and chances a look behind him to see if he’s being followed. There’s no one chasing him but the front door of the mansion closes by itself.  
  
This time Jongin doesn’t stop running until he makes it all the way home and he hides himself in his room, ignoring his mother’s concerned questions. He should never have gone into that house.  
  
  
  
The next morning Jongin wakes up with the sun. He dresses and gets himself ready for the day as normal. When he arrives in the kitchen, he’s surprised to find that his mother isn’t there, preparing breakfast for both of them like normal. He finds her in her room instead, still tucked snugly in her bed.  
  
“Mom?” He asks. Her only response is a violent coughing fit and Jongin rushes to her side in an instant. “Mom, are you okay?” He touches his hand to her forehead and she’s burning up with a fever.  
  
Jongin runs to the bathroom to grab a towel. He soaks it in cold water before returning to his mother’s side, using it to wipe the up layer of sweat on her skin. The cloth only cools the heat of her skin for a moment before it becomes warm to the touch as well. Jongin leaves again to rinse out the towel and when he returns there are men inside his mother’s bedroom.  
  
“What the–” Jongin’s words are cut off when someone from behind him grabs hold of his hair and pulls hard, making him stumble backward. The wet cloth falls out of his hand as he’s pushed to his knees and with another yank of his hair, he’s looking up at the angry face of the town’s poor excuse for a mayor.  
  
The mayor’s hand raises in the air a split second before it connects painfully with Jongin’s cheek. He hisses at the sting and the mayor doesn’t even give him a chance to recover before he’s got a hard grip on Jongin’s chin, forcing his head up so far that his neck cracks.  
  
“You filthy son of a whore,” the mayor spits, practically shaking with anger. Jongin’s seen the man furious before, but nothing to this extent. And never directed at him either. “Are you too good for our rules now, is that it?”  
  
“What are you–”  
  
“You know it’s forbidden,” the mayor interrupts Jongin, continuing to yell at the top of his lungs. Jongin’s heart sinks to his stomach when the man suddenly points to where his mother is lying unconscious on the bed. “This is all your fault,” the man continues, and then he gestures to wildly around the room. “All of this is your fault.”  
  
The man holding onto him releases his hair and Jongin takes a kick to the back instead. Wheezing, Jongin tries to get back up but a boot against his spine keeps him face down on the floor. “Half the fucking town is sick because of you,” someone tells him. “And four people have already died.” The pressure against his back is so much that it gets difficult to breathe. “My little girl is sick too.”  
  
“You angered the wizard,” the mayor says, a bit more calmly this time. Jongin glares at him when he takes a seat on the bed beside his mother. He can’t do anything but watch as the mayor smoothes a hand through his mother’s hair when he’s pinned to the floor and severely outnumbered. “So you better figure out a way to lift the curse he put on us.” The mayor’s hand trails down his mother’s neck. “Or your mother might not last long enough to survive the illness. But if you can’t fix this mess, then don’t bother coming back at all.”  
  
Another man steps up to leave a fresh bruise on Jongin’s skin. He’ll be lucky if his ribs weren’t cracked. “It shouldn’t be too hard for you to get close to the wizard,” the man says. “It’s part of your family business after all.”  
  
  
  
Jongin knocks on the front door this time instead of just barging right in. His palms are sweaty so he wipes them on his pants but it doesn’t help. The whole thing was a bad idea, a nightmare he wishes he could wake up from. Unfortunately this is the reality he’s stuck with and the fate of his mother and the town is resting on his shoulders.  
  
There’s no answer, but Jongin’s not stupid enough to think that no one’s home so he waits. After few minutes pass and there’s still nothing Jongin decides to try knocking again but right when he lifts his hand the door opens by itself. Jongin swallows hard and takes a step inside.  
  
“You’re back.” It’s the same voice from before and there’s _still_ no one else in the room with him. The dagger hidden beneath his pant leg isn’t going to be of any use against a person that he can’t even see.  
  
“Yeah,” Jongin says, hoping that the fear isn’t clear in his voice.  
  
“Why are you here?” Each word spoken sounds like it’s coming from a different direction and Jongin feels like he’s surrounded. “What do you want?”  
  
“Help,” Jongin tries. And when he doesn’t get a reply he sighs. “I don’t know if you’ll be able to see this,” Jongin says as he slowly lifts up the side of his shirt, revealing his new black and dark purple bruises blooming against the skin of his stomach and ribs. A parting gift from the mayor’s minions.  
  
Jongin hears a loud gasp and he’s definitely not alone in the room anymore. A tall figure materializes in front of him and Jongin lets out a yelp of surprise. The wizard is nothing like Jongin was expecting; he’s young and extremely good-looking, a frown gracing his features. He’s long and lanky with strong muscles but he doesn’t look like he’s capable of hurting a fly, let alone cursing an entire town.  
  
“Who did this to you?” He reaches out to touch the bruised skin and Jongin flinches away in pain. “Sorry.” The wizard looks sheepish and it’s stupidly adorable.  
  
Jongin frowns. He can’t afford to get distracted; his mother’s life depends on it. He needs to kill the wizard to get the curse lifted from the town. The attraction he feels towards the wizard must be some sort of spell he’s under, there’s no way he’d find this guy handsome otherwise.  
  
“The mayor and his men,” Jongin says. “They punished me for coming here yesterday.”  
  
The wizard narrows his eyes at Jongin. He takes a step back. “Why?”  
  
“It’s forbidden to come here.”  
  
The wizard is clearly wary of him, keeping a safe distance between them and Jongin doesn’t blame him. After all Jongin is holding a dagger that he’s planning on piercing his heart with.  
  
“So then why did you come back?”  
  
Jongin doesn’t have a suitable answer that he can share so he just shrugs. “I didn’t have anywhere else to go,” he whispers. “Sorry, it was a mistake. I should go,” he says when it doesn’t seem like the wizard believes him. He turns away, putting an extra limp in his step for good measure as he makes his way to the door.  
  
“Wait,” he hears from behind him. Jongin tries to keep his smirk hidden. “I might be able do something about those bruises. I think there’s some ointment in the basement that will speed up the healing process.”  
  
“Thank you,” Jongin says, flashing what he’s hoping is a believable smile. The wizard just stares at him and for a moment Jongin’s heart sinks, thinking that he’s is able see right through him; that he knows about the dagger that Jongin is carrying and that he knows what Jongin is planning to do with it.  
  
Jongin’s doubt falls away when the wizard’s face breaks into the biggest grin he’s ever seen. “My name is Chanyeol,” he says and Jongin thinks that if he keeps smiling like that his face is going to split in two.  
  
“Jongin.”  
  
Jongin didn’t think it was possible, but Chanyeol’s smile widens. He kind of feels bad for what he’s about to do. “It’s this way,” the wizard says with a wave of his hand. “Follow me.”  
  
Jongin nods, trailing slowly behind Chanyeol as they walk toward a door that Jongin could have sworn wasn’t there before. It leads to a long hallway and at the end is another door (which automatically swings open when Chanyeol reaches it). Jongin continues to follow Chanyeol through what seems like a maze of turns and doors until they finally reach a set of stairs.  
  
“It’s this way,” Chanyeol says as he descends the stairs. “Just a little further.”  
  
This is the chance that Jongin has been waiting for. Chanyeol’s physically bigger than him, but with the wizard ahead of him going down the stairs, Jongin has a small advantage and Chanyeol will never see it coming. He carefully, and quietly as he can, removes the blade from the sheath strapped around his leg and as Chanyeol hits the bottom of the stairs, that’s when Jongin attacks.  
  
He jumps on top of Chanyeol’s back, arms going tightly around his neck with the knife pressing hard against the soft skin just below his jaw line. He ignores the pain that his bruises cause when he’s pressed into the other. “Listen closely,” Jongin hisses directly into his ear, so close that his lips almost brush against Chanyeol’s skin. “You’re going to remove whatever curse you put on the village.”  
  
Chanyeol doesn’t react right away, he just stands there stiffly and lets Jongin cling, threatening him. “What makes you think I did that?” Chanyeol asks after a moment, voice low but soft at the same time. It’s unnerving how calm he is with Jongin holding a blade to his throat.  
  
“Don’t be stupid,” Jongin replies as he adds just a bit more pressure on the blade held against Chanyeol’s skin. “You’re the only one with the power to do something like that.”  
  
“Am I?” Chanyeol asks and then suddenly Jongin is holding onto _nothing._ He stumbles forward, down the last few steps and falls onto the ground.  
  
“I know you’re still there,” Jongin says, holding the knife out in front of him as if it’ll actually be of use to protect him from whatever Chanyeol is capable of. “You just _disappeared,_ do you actually think that everyone can do that?”  
  
A deep, rumbling laugh fills the stairwell and it sends a shiver down Jongin’s spine. “Do _you_ actually think that everyone can’t learn how?” Chanyeol says in a mockery of the incredulous tone Jongin had used.  
  
“What?”  
  
“I wasn’t born knowing how to use magic,” Chanyeol explains, appearing again in front of Jongin. “I was taught.”  
  
Now that his target his visible, Jongin points the blade at Chanyeol’s chest, right where his heart is. “Don’t change the subject,” Jongin says, unable to keep the hint of desperation out of his voice any longer. There’s no way that he can win this fight, let alone make it out of this house alive now. He doesn’t know the extent of what Chanyeol can do, but he’s beginning to understand that he’s up against a really powerful wizard and he doesn’t stand a chance. “I know you put the curse on the village. A lot of innocent people are going to die if you don’t stop it.”  
  
Chanyeol doesn’t say anything else. He just takes a step forward as Jongin’s vision starts to blur and eventually everything turns black.  
  
  
  
When Jongin opens his eyes he’s staring at the wall. He blinks but it only make the pounding in his head worse. Slowly, he pulls himself up and looks around but there’s really nothing to see. He’s inside a small room, just enough space for him to spread his arms out without touching the other side. There’s no door or windows, Jongin realizes with a curse, so it’s impossible to know how long he’s been knocked out for. He wonders how many people from his village have passed away while he’s been unconscious and he curses again.  
  
Jongin pounds his fist against the wall closest to him. “Chanyeol,” he screams. “You have to lift the curse!”  
  
He continues to yell until his voice is raw and his throat hurts; Jongin keeps attacking the wall too, until the skin of knuckles is torn off, blood oozing out of the open wounds. The wizard doesn’t show up again and eventually Jongin passes out from exhaustion.  
  
  
  
The next time Jongin wakes up, Chanyeol is holding a bowl in front of him. “Drink,” Chanyeol instructs, pushing the bowl against Jongin’s bottom lip. “You must be thirsty.”  
  
Jongin just glares at him, keeping his lips firmly sealed together.  
  
“Drink,” he repeats, but Jongin just turns his head to the side. Chanyeol sighs. “Yesterday you wouldn’t shut up and now I can’t get you to say a word.”  
  
He sets the bowl aside, going for one of Jongin’s bloodied hands instead. “I’m not going to hurt you,” Chanyeol says. Jongin doesn’t trust him and he tries to fight the wizard, but he’s too weak to put up much of a struggle and ends up just slumping back against the wall. Chanyeol, with one of Jongin’s hands in both of his bigger ones, smoothes his fingers across the scratches. It stings, Jongin yelps and tries to pull his hand away but Chanyeol doesn’t let go, just continues whatever it is he’s doing.  
  
When Jongin gets his hand back, he’s surprised to see that it’s completely healed. Except for the dried blood and a bit of lingering redness, it doesn’t look like there was anything wrong with it in the first place.  
  
“I thought you needed some sort of ointment to do that,” Jongin accuses, eying Chanyeol suspiciously.  
  
“I lied,” Chanyeol says, picking up the bowl to hold it out for Jongin again. “But you didn’t come here for help with some bruising either. Now drink.”  
  
Jongin feels guilty and he accepts the bowl from Chanyeol only so he can hide his face while he takes a gulp of the liquid. It has a slightly fruity taste to it and the more he drinks, the more relaxed he feels.  
  
“Give me your other hand,” Chanyeol says. Jongin reluctantly shifts the bowl into his healed hand so he can do as he’s told. Chanyeol runs the rough pads of his fingers over the cuts and Jongin hisses into the bowl when it gets a bit painful. “What’s the real reason why you came back?”  
  
“I told you, I need you to lift the curse that you put on the village,” Jongin says. He takes another sip of the drink. His stomach feels warm and pleasantly full despite the fact that he hasn’t eaten anything in at least a day.  
  
Chanyeol hums, nodding as his fingers gently work over Jongin’s knuckles. “But why help out the village that did this to you?” Chanyeol asks, reaching out with one of his hands to brush against where the bruises are hidden under Jongin’s shirt.  
  
Jongin stays silent for a moment, staring at the last bit of contents in the bowl. “My mother was one of the first ones to get sick,” Jongin answers truthfully and he briefly wonders why he isn’t lying through his teeth. “They told me that if I couldn’t get you to lift the curse that I should kill you.”  
  
“Kill me?” Chanyeol asks unable to hide the surprise in his voice and he accidentally grips Jongin’s hand too hard in shock, causing him to pull it back with a small cry of distress.  
  
“It wasn’t my idea,” Jongin insists and without really thinking about what he’s saying, he keeps rambling. “They threatened my mother. I don’t want to kill you.”  
  
“That’s good,” Chanyeol says with a chuckle, “Because I don’t want to die.” He holds out his hands again and this time Jongin doesn’t even blink as he places his hand back into Chanyeol’s.  
  
“I actually kind of like you,” Jongin confesses, watching Chanyeol’s fingers literally work their magic against his skin. “I mean, you’re kind of handsome and I–” Jongin promptly shuts his mouth before he says something else that he’s going to regret, an embarrassed blush creeping up on his cheeks. He glances in horror at the seemingly innocent bowl in his hand before he turns his glare over to Chanyeol as he snatches his other hand back again. “What the fuck was in that?” He demands, throwing the bowl and the rest of the liquid towards the far wall. It shatters on impact, showering the floor with a mixture of sharp clay shards and the sweet tasting juice.  
  
“That was a truth serum,” Chanyeol replies with a smirk. Jongin wishes he could take back his previous statement except that Chanyeol looks even better when he’s staring at him like that, he thinks with a sinking feeling in his stomach.  
  
“I can’t–” Jongin starts angrily but the rest of the words fade when his voice dies in his throat and he realizes that what he was about to say was a lie.  
  
Chanyeol barks out a laugh. “Were you about to say that you can’t believe that I’d do something like that to you?”  
  
Jongin wishes that Chanyeol would do something unattractive soon so that he can get over his little crush. “Shut up.”  
  
  
  
Chanyeol comes back to see Jongin a few hours later. “Get up,” he instructs.  
  
Jongin glares at the wizard from where he’s curled up in a ball in the corner of the small room. His ribs still ache but he’s too stubborn to move. “Why, so you can interrogate me again?” Jongin mumbles into his knees, pointedly keeping his gaze trained on the floor.  
  
Chanyeol just raises an eyebrow at him. “The truth serum should have worn off by now,” he says. When Jongin doesn’t budge, Chanyeol sighs. “If you still want the cure for your mother, then I’m going to need your help.”  
  
That gets Jongin’s attention, his head snapping up to stare at Chanyeol. “What?”  
  
“It’s not a curse, and it’s certainly nothing I did,” Chanyeol explains.  
  
“No, I mean why do you want to help me?” Jongin asks, looking away again. “After I tried to kill you…”  
  
“You’re interesting,” Chanyeol replies with shrug. “And cute too.” He ignores the shocked expression Jongin gives him. “So are you going to help me or not?”  
  
Jongin doesn’t really have anything else to lose at the moment so he gets up from his position in the corner and follows Chanyeol out the door when he leaves.  
  
  
  
Standing in the middle of a small library, Chanyeol rattles off the long list of ingredients to Jongin. It’s a complete list they’ll need to collect in order to make the cure and honestly Jongin has _no fucking clue_ what over half of the items are. When he informs Chanyeol, the wizard just pulls an old book off one of the top shelves in the corner and tosses it to Jongin. He opens up the book but immediately regrets it when he inhales a lung-full of dust for his effort. After he gets his breathing under control, he flips through the pages, finding detailed drawings of various herbs and plants, including the ones that they’ll need.  
  
“Did you draw these?” Jongin asks when he runs his fingers along the hand-drawn pictures and spots a small signature that kind of resembles Chanyeol’s name.  
  
Chanyeol comes up behind him to rest his chin on Jongin’s shoulder, looking down at the book in his hands. “Yeah,” Chanyeol says, reaching around him to flip another couple of pages as his warm breath ghosts over Jongin’s skin. He resists the urge to shiver. “That was _years_ ago though. At least twenty.”  
  
Jongin hums, but then frowns when the math doesn’t add up correctly in his head. There’s no way that Chanyeol would have been able to draw something so good when he was just a toddler. “Twenty?” He asks, incredulously.  
  
“Or was it thirty? Maybe more?” Chanyeol says, scrunching his face up cutely as he thinks it over, one of his hands coming up to scratch at the back of his own neck. “Ah, it’s been such a long time, I don’t remember anymore.”  
  
“Just how old are you?”  
  
“Um,” Chanyeol says. “Two hundred and fifty-five?” He sounds like he’s unsure about his answer and there’s an awkward moment where Jongin just stares at Chanyeol in disbelief.  
  
“What?”  
  
“No, two hundred and fifty-six,” Chanyeol says. He seems more confident about it this time.  
  
Jongin’s jaw drops. “You’re joking.”  
  
“Nope,” Chanyeol says. He flips another page of the book and points to his signature.  
  
“Look, I actually dated this one.” Sure enough, when Jongin turns his attention back to the book, he sees that it has been dated thirty-two years ago.  
  
“Oh,” Jongin says dumbly, not knowing how else to respond to something like that.  
  
“Come on,” Chanyeol says, taking Jongin by the wrist so he can tug him out of the room. “Those villagers aren’t getting any better while we’re just standing around talking like this.”  
  
  
  
Jongin is outside in the field of wildflowers, book in hand as reference and he’s been searching through hundreds of different flowers, looking for a specific kind. Jongin’s half of the list that Chanyeol had given him says that he needs the petals for the cure that they’re going to make together. He’s been there for a few hours already, the sun beating down on him but it’ll set soon and then they’ll be forced to call it quits for the day.  
  
Chanyeol’s had a lot more luck with finding his half of the ingredients. He comes out of the forest with a basket full of various items and a struggling rabbit in his hand.  
  
“What’s the bunny for?” Jongin asks when Chanyeol gets close enough.  
  
“Dinner.”  
  
Jongin looks between Chanyeol and the adorable rabbit a couple of times. “Dinner?”  
  
“And a lucky rabbit’s foot is on the list,” he says, almost dropping the rabbit as it wriggles furiously in his grasp. He’s completely oblivious to the look Jongin gives him. “It’s been a while since I’ve been able to catch one too.”  
  
“You’re going to eat him?” Jongin asks in a small voice.  
  
“ _We’re_ going to–” Chanyeol stops when he finally looks up and notices how the colour has been drained out of Jongin’s face. “You’ve never eaten a rabbit before?”  
  
Jongin’s still staring at the struggling animal in Chanyeol’s hand. “No,” he quietly admits after a moment of silence.  
  
Chanyeol rolls his eyes. “Well, this is dinner,” he says holding the rabbit up so it faces Jongin. It struggles even more in Chanyeol’s hand. “If you don’t like it, you don’t have to eat it.”  
  
Jongin glares at the wizard. He knows that Jongin hasn’t had anything to eat since he came here. Chanyeol doesn’t seem to care though, making his way back into the house without bothering to see if Jongin is following. Jongin just stands there, mulling the options over in his head. He glances back to the forest, which his village lies just about a two-hour trek beyond, and he wonders how his mother is faring.  
  
Jongin can’t give up now, for the sake of his mother and the rest of the people in the village. With one last look at the forest, Jongin turns and heads into the mansion to find Chanyeol.  
  
Watching Chanyeol kill and skin the rabbit is the single most disgusting thing that Jongin has ever witnessed in the nineteen years of his life. If Jongin hadn’t been completely starving, he’s sure that he would have lost his appetite. Though when Chanyeol sets down a bowl of the rabbit stew in front of him, he has to admit that it actually smells delicious. He digs in as soon as Chanyeol’s hand is out of the way.  
  
“Whoa, you’ll make yourself sick if you don’t slow down,” Chanyeol warns, but Jongin has already burnt his tongue from practically inhaling the hot stew.  
  
“Ow,” Jongin complains. He glares down at the bowl like that was its intention all along.  
  
There’s a mischievous glint in Chanyeol’s eyes when he glances up at Jongin from over his own bowl of stew. “I can heal that for you,” he says, voice a tad deeper than it normally is. “If you want.”  
  
Jongin takes another look at the boiling hot stew in front of him and nods. It’s going to be really painful if he tries to continue eating with the burn on his tongue.  
  
“Come here then,” Chanyeol says, setting his own bowl to the side and gesturing for Jongin to come closer. Jongin gets up, walking around the table to stand in front of Chanyeol. “Closer,” Chanyeol tells him, but he doesn’t wait for him to move before he stands up from the chair, pulling Jongin closer.  
  
“What are you–” Jongin begins, watching as Chanyeol wraps one of his arms around his waist. Chanyeol tugs until their bodies are pressed flush together.  
  
“Open your mouth,” Chanyeol commands gently and Jongin can’t tell if it’s something the wizard is doing to him or if it’s his own free will but his lips part as he looks up into Chanyeol’s dark eyes.  
  
Jongin’s not entirely sure what he expects Chanyeol to do, but leaning down to _kiss_ him definitely isn’t it. He lets out an embarrassed squeak, trying to squirm away, but Chanyeol keeps him firmly in place. Chanyeol pushes his tongue passed Jongin’s lips before he can think to clamp his mouth shut. It hurts at first, Chanyeol pressing his tongue directly onto his burn, but the feeling quickly morphs into a pleasurable tingling that spreads through the rest of him.  
  
When Chanyeol sucks lightly on his tongue Jongin gives in, tilting his head to the side as he kisses back. His entire body is heating up from the touch, a feeling that he’s never known before sinking into his bones, making him want. Chanyeol’s arm around him tightens as their lips and tongues slide together and Jongin wraps his arms around Chanyeol’s neck in response. Jongin’s sure that his completely healed by now but neither of them makes any move to pull away.  
  
Jongin’s chest starts tingling too, the feeling spreading to every part of him that had been harmed by the mayor and his minions. It takes him a moment to realize that Chanyeol must be healing those injuries as well.  
  
He loses track of how long they stay wrapped up in each other but eventually Chanyeol breaks the kiss and the moment is broken. Jongin gasps like he’d been burned again as Chanyeol, with an unreadable expression, releases Jongin from his hold. Jongin stumbles backward, his face a deep shade of red, eyes wide and his hand comes up to cover his mouth as his brain catches up to what just happened between them.  
  
The only thing Chanyeol says to him before he leaves the room is, “your stew is getting cold.”  
  
Jongin goes back to sit down in front of his food, taking a bite every once in a while. It’s definitely cooled down considerably since he took his first mouthful but he doesn’t taste it because he’s too distracted trying to figure out where the slight ache in his heart and the desire to be touched came from.  
  
The next morning they don’t talk about what happened. They don’t talk about it when Chanyeol fixes breakfast (heating up some of the leftover stew) and they certainly don’t talk about it when they leave the house to search for the rest of the ingredients that Chanyeol needs to make the cure. Not talking about it makes Jongin nervous but at the same time, he’s not sure what to say about the kiss that healed his tongue but left his knees weak and his heart pounding uncontrollably in the process.  
  
Jongin tries to forget about it and concentrates on finding the petals he wasn’t able to locate yesterday instead but that doesn’t help either. Chanyeol’s off in the forest again, looking for whatever’s next on his half of the list (probably something gross like frog brains) and Jongin’s left wondering why there has to be so much space in between them.  
  
  
  
It takes them a total of three days to collect everything and now they’re back in the library, the ingredients spread out on the table before them. There’s a pot of boiling water hanging above the fireplace (which Jongin doesn’t remember seeing there before) and every once in a while, Chanyeol goes to stir it, adding another ingredient to the mix.  
  
Most of what Jongin collected were plants and herbs, barks from certain trees and various roots. However, Chanyeol’s list included bugs, the rabbit’s foot and other things that Jongin doesn’t even want to know the identity of.  
  
“They’re not going to have to eat this, are they?” Jongin asks, eying the concoction suspiciously. Considering the ingredients, it looks more like a poison than any antidote Jongin’s ever seen.  
  
“No,” Chanyeol laughs. “Of course not.”  
  
“How does it work then?” he asks as Chanyeol adds the petals that Jongin collected. He keeps stirring it; three times clockwise and then three times counter clockwise, always in the same pattern.  
  
“It’s sort of like an ointment,” Chanyeol explains. “You rub it on the person’s chest and the magical properties sink into their skin to heal them.”  
  
“Oh.”  
  
“The illness plaguing your village is beyond my skill to heal just by touch.”  
  
At the mention of Chanyeol healing by _touch_ , Jongin promptly goes red. Thinking about it makes Jongin want to do it again and he’s just itching to be in Chanyeol’s arms again. Or have Chanyeol press him up against the wall and–  
  
Jongin shakes his head, trying to dislodge the thoughts from his mind; he hopes that Chanyeol doesn’t notice.  
  
He doesn’t notice, or if he does, he doesn’t mention it. He just keeps adding more and more to the pot in some sort of order that Jongin’s not aware of.  
  
Chanyeol keeps stirring the pot, long into the night and a few times Jongin helps add more wood to the fire as needed. But eventually when it gets too late he falls asleep at the table, the soft crackling of the fire and the sound of Chanyeol stirring lures him into a light sleep.  
  
He wakes up a few hours later with a blanket draped over his shoulders and Chanyeol gently shaking him. “It’s ready, come on,” Chanyeol says. “Get up.”  
  
Jongin groans in response, burying his face further into the makeshift pillow he created out of his own arms. “Can’t this wait until morning,” he asks, voice thick with sleep.  
  
“And how many people do you think are going to die between now and then?” Chanyeol asks. “Your mother?”  
  
Memories of his mother flash through Jongin’s mind; her laughing at the dinner table, the way she’d brush the hair from his forehead, her worrying over him the last time he had come down with a fever, her warm and caring smile. He doesn’t know what he’d do if he lost her. “Mom,” Jongin whispers, wide awake now. The blanket falls from his shoulders when he stands up from the table. “Alright, I’m ready.”  
  
Chanyeol has already scooped the boiled down mixture into a dozen or so small clear glass jars and he’s in the middle of packing them safely into a rucksack as Jongin stretches the sleep from his muscles. “What time is it?” Jongin asks, covering a yawn with the back of his hand.  
  
Chanyeol gives him the softest smile. “The sun will rise in about an hour,” he says. “Come here.”  
  
Jongin’s a bit wary of those words because the last time he heard Chanyeol say _come here_ he had been kissed. He slowly makes his way over but the only thing that the wizard does is help put the rucksack over his head with minimal clinking of the glass inside. Chanyeol also pulls a traveling cloak off a hook from the wall and secures it around Jongin’s neck.  
  
“It’s cold outside,” Chanyeol says when he notices Jongin’s questioning look. The simple gesture tugs at Jongin’s heart and he can’t help the shy smile that pulls at the corners of his lips.  
  
“You should get going now,” Chanyeol says and Jongin’s smile fades just as quickly as it had appeared.  
  
“You’re not coming with me?” He asks, hoping Chanyeol doesn’t hear the disappointment in his voice.  
  
Chanyeol just shrugs in response. “I don’t belong there.”  
  
“You could,” Jongin says. He steps closer to Chanyeol and without thinking, he grabs a fist full of the wizard’s sleeve. For whatever reason it hurts to think about returning to the village alone. Chanyeol’s the only friend that Jongin has ever had and he isn’t in a hurry to give him up. “Come with me, please,” Jongin says quietly.  
  
Chanyeol looks away. “Jongin, I–”  
  
“My mother would love to meet you,” Jongin interrupts before Chanyeol can reject him. It’s a poor excuse and they both know it. There’s a long moment of silence and Jongin can’t think of anything else to say that’ll convince Chanyeol to come with him so he holds his tongue.  
  
Chanyeol’s hand covers his and Jongin looks up in surprise. “Alright,” he says, his warm hand giving Jongin’s smaller one a tiny squeeze. Jongin’s heart does _not_ skip a beat. “I’ll come with you.”  
  
  
  
They make it to the village by the time the sun has just made it over the horizon and since it’s still pretty early, not many villagers are out at this time. A few of them stare curiously at them as they pass, but Jongin pays them no mind, dragging Chanyeol in the direction of the small house that he lives in with his mother.  
  
“It’s over there,” Jongin says when his home comes in view. It’s a lot smaller than Chanyeol’s mansion, but it’s cosy. Jongin and his mother don’t need that much space anyway.  
  
The small flower garden by the front door has seen better days, the plants withered and the bed overgrown with weeds. Jongin makes a note of it so he can help his mother nurse the garden back to its former glory. But for now he ignores the dying flowers in favour of rushing into the house with Chanyeol on his heels.  
  
“Mom,” Jongin calls as soon as he steps foot inside the house. “Mom, I’m home.” There’s no response and a sinking feeling settles in Jongin’s stomach. “Mom,” he calls again, leaving Chanyeol at the front door as he rushes through the house to her bedroom.  
  
Her room is empty. There’s no one home.  
  
When Chanyeol catches up to Jongin, he finds him sitting on his mother’s bed, staring blankly at her pillow. “Maybe,” Jongin starts, his voice is rough and his eyes are beginning to water. “Maybe she got better.”  
  
Chanyeol hurries over to where Jongin is and pulls him against his chest in an almost bone crushing hug. “I’m so sorry,” he whispers into Jongin’s hair.  
  
Jongin roughly pulls away from Chanyeol. “She’s not–” he lashes out, refusing to think the worst. “She can’t be. She’s probably at work.”  
  
“Jongin,” Chanyeol says softly.  
  
“She’s _not_ dead,” Jongin yells. He shoves Chanyeol out of his way in his haste to get out of the empty house. He feels like he can’t breathe inside but when he finally makes it out into the street, the fresh air doesn’t make it any better; he still feels like he’s suffocating.  
  
“Jongin?” A voice calls. Jongin turns to the side and recognizes a boy that lives a few houses down from him. “You’re back,” the boy sounds surprised to see him and Jongin doesn’t blame him. The entire village probably never expected him to return, let alone actually have a cure for them.  
  
“Where’s my mother?” Jongin demands, just as Chanyeol steps out of the house as well. “Tell me where she is!”  
  
“She’s–”  
  
“Take us to her,” Chanyeol says calmly. The boy looks startled at Chanyeol’s sudden appearance. In a village where everyone knows everyone, it’s rare to come across someone they’ve never seen before. “If you know where she is, then take us to her.”  
  
There’s a moment of the boy just looking back and forth between Jongin and Chanyeol before he finally nods. “This way,” he says.  
  
The boy leads them to the graveyard at the edge of the town beside their church. “Over there,” he says, pointing to one of the many recently dug graves. The boy doesn’t stay to witness the look of anguish that flashes across Jongin’s features.  
  
Jongin feels like the world’s collapsing around him as he stares at the place where his mother is buried. His knees give out but before he can fall to the ground Chanyeol catches him, holding him close and stroking his hair as Jongin shakes in his arms. “It’s not true,” Jongin mumbles into Chanyeol’s chest, his tears soaking through his shirt. “She can’t be gone. She can’t be.”  
  
Time seems to drag on for Jongin as he mourns the loss of his mother. He’s not sure how long he sits in Chanyeol’s lap, curled against him, shaking and crying until he’s got no more tears left to spill but eventually others show up in the graveyard as well.  
  
“How dare you come back here,” it’s the mayor’s voice and Jongin looks up from where his face was buried in Chanyeol’s neck to see the man standing there with the boy that brought them to the graveyard, along with a bunch of other villagers. “You filthy bastard,” the man continues, his face turning red with anger. “How dare you show your face in this town.”  
  
“The mayor?” Chanyeol whispers to Jongin, his arms automatically tightening his grip on him, holding him protectively.  
  
“Yes,” Jongin breathes out, his voice trembling out of fear now, instead of grief.  
  
“I told you he had come back,” the boy says to the mayor and then he turns his glare on Chanyeol and Jongin. “And he’s brought the wizard with him.” Some of the villagers look scared, but most of them are as angry as the mayor.  
  
“He’s the one that cursed us,” someone says as Chanyeol drags Jongin to his feet. Chanyeol positions them so he’s standing in between the villagers and Jongin, shielding him from their view.  
  
“It wasn’t Chanyeol’s fault,” Jongin yells back at them but he just gets ignored.  
  
“He killed my wife,” another accuses. The crowd advances on them, armed with makeshift weapons; axes, hoes, and shovels, but some of them are actually carrying blades.  
  
“He didn’t do anything wrong!”  
  
“Save your breath,” Chanyeol tells him, taking a few steps backward and forcing Jongin back as well. “They’re not going to listen. They need someone to blame for the deaths of their loved ones, it doesn’t matter if we’re the ones at fault or not.”  
  
“Then what are we going to do?” Jongin asks, grabbing onto the back of Chanyeol’s cloak. “We’re trapped.”  
  
Chanyeol bursts out laughing, the sound deep and rich and it startles Jongin just as much as it does the villagers threatening them. He turns around to cup Jongin’s cheek in his hand, tilting his head until he meets Chanyeol’s eyes. “You forget that I’m a wizard.” Chanyeol says, smirking down at Jongin.  
  
“Be careful,” Jongin says anyway. He’s already lost the most important person to him, he can’t bear the thought of losing Chanyeol as well.  
  
Chanyeol nods. “Don’t worry about me, I’ll be okay. Give me the cure,” he says and Jongin hands over the rucksack with the jars in it. “Stay here and don’t move.” He leaves Jongin standing there, blinking after him as he approaches the angry mob of villagers.  
  
“Prepare yourselves,” the mayor says. Every one in the crowd shifts, anxious to take their anger out on Chanyeol.  
  
“Is he going to attack us?” One of the villagers asks. “What a fool, he’s outnumbered.”  
  
“Not if we get him first,” a villager holding an axe says. “Let’s go!”  
  
The man charges at Chanyeol, weapon raised and ready to strike. Chanyeol simply raises one of his own hands in defence and the man stops dead in his tracks, completely frozen in place. Shocked, the rest of the crowd stumbles backward, all of them murmuring in fear about Chanyeol’s powers.  
  
Chanyeol calmly walks over to the man, ignoring the mob’s comments and he hooks the rucksack over the villager’s shoulder. “This is the cure that you seek,” he tells the man. “Rub a small portion on the chest of the ill. If they are not too far gone, they’ll start to get better within the day.” Turning to address the rest of the crowd Chanyeol says, “You have your cure. It is for you to decide if you wish to use it or not, it makes no difference to me.”  
  
He walks back to where he left Jongin standing and holds out his hand for him to take. “Are you coming?” He asks.  
  
Jongin doesn’t hesitate in taking Chanyeol’s hand, his own fingers automatically intertwining with Chanyeol’s bigger ones. It’s so simple, but the gesture makes Jongin feel better, gives him the feeling that, after everything he’s been through, he’s going to be okay because Chanyeol is at his side.  
  
As they turn to leave, hand in hand, Jongin spares one last look over his shoulder at the crowd of villagers that hate him and then his eyes shift to his mother’s grave. _Goodbye Mom_ , he thinks, _I hope you’re in a better place now_. He looks up at Chanyeol as they make their way back through the forest at the edge of the village, back toward the mansion at the edge of the island.  
  
 _Because I’ve finally found the place where I belong._


	2. Epilogue

_Four months later_  
  
“I’m _so_ tired,” Jongin declares right before he flops down face first onto their bed. He’s too exhausted to bother even take off his clothes. Who knew learning to do magic would take so much energy?  
  
Chanyeol tsks at him. “At least undress before you get into bed,” he says while pulling off his own clothes.  
  
“Make me.” Jongin mumbles and he hears Chanyeol sigh in response. He’s already half asleep by the time Chanyeol, clad in only his underwear, walks over to assist Jongin in getting ready for bed. Jongin’s shoes are the first to go, followed closely by his socks.  
  
“Roll over,” Chanyeol says, giving Jongin’s thigh a smack in attempt to get him moving but the only response he gets is Jongin mumbling something into his pillow.  
  
Chanyeol sighs and runs his hands up the back of Jongin’s shirt, bringing the tips of his fingers gently down the sensitive skin of Jongin’s sides. Jongin squirms a bit, blindly trying to swat Chanyeol’s hand away, but Chanyeol just pins both his wrists to the bed and tickles him again.  
  
“Okay, okay,” Jongin says and Chanyeol releases him. “I’m awake now.” He flips over and stares up at Chanyeol expectantly. “Aren’t you going to finish undressing me?”  
  
Chanyeol eyes Jongin for a moment. “You never fell asleep, did you,” he says. It’s not a question and judging by the way Jongin’s lips pull up into a smirk, he guessed correctly. “What am I going to do with you?” Chanyeol sighs.  
  
Jongin’s smirk widens. “Well–” he starts.  
  
“No, don’t answer that,” Chanyeol interrupts, choosing that moment to straddle Jongin’s thighs. Giving him what he wants successfully shuts Jongin up. “That was a rhetorical question.”  
  
Jongin hums in response as Chanyeol works on getting his pants undone and then he takes his time sliding them down off his hips. Chanyeol’s hands are warm as they press against Jongin’s crotch through his underwear, rubbing incessantly at his growing arousal and forcing a hitch in Jongin’s breath. “Hyung,” he moans, bucking up into Chanyeol’s hand, wanting more, needing it. “Please.”  
  
“Of course,” Chanyeol obliges as always because he can never say no to Jongin. But first he helps Jongin remove the rest of his clothes and pulls the last of his off as well. Naked, Chanyeol covers Jongin’s body with his own and grinds their hips together, the sweet drag of their erections together driving both of them crazy. With arms around his neck, Jongin pulls Chanyeol in for a kiss, rutting against him with just as much need.  
  
“Chanyeol,” Jongin moans. He doesn’t even have to say anything else because Chanyeol is already scrambling for the jar of scented oil that they keep by the bed. When he settles himself between Jongin’s legs, his fingers are slick enough to push in two at once. Jongin keens as Chanyeol thoroughly works him open, his fingers just the right size to leave Jongin gasping for breath as he pushes back against him for more. He cries out with pleasure when Chanyeol adds another and then expertly hooks his fingers just right, the tips of them brushing against his prostate.  
  
“Hold on,” Chanyeol says, pulling his fingers out as soon as Jongin has been reduced to a moaning mess, knowing that he’s ready. He lubes himself up and quickly pushes inside, filling him up before Jongin has a chance to complain about being empty. He’s rewarded with the a low moan when he’s settled in as deep as he can go, Jongin’s legs coming to wrap around Chanyeol’s hips, urging him to move.  
  
He doesn’t waste another moment before pulling almost all the way out of Jongin and then slamming back inside. Chanyeol’s grip on his hips are hard enough to leave finger-shaped bruises but Jongin doesn’t mind because Chanyeol always soothes the tender skin with his tongue afterward to heal him. But for now the pain is a welcome reminder of how much Chanyeol wants him, his big hands pulling Jongin’s hips back to meet every thrust.  
  
It’s almost too much, the in and out drag of Chanyeol’s cock inside Jongin pushes him toward the end sooner than he expected. He whines as his orgasm hits, coming untouched except for the slight friction of his cock against Chanyeol’s belly. Chanyeol grunts at the added tightness around him and picks up the pace, fucking into Jongin with an almost brutal force.  
  
Chanyeol’s hips stutter to a stop a moment later, his cock twitching as he releases inside Jongin. That’s a feeling Jongin will never get enough of, Chanyeol’s come warm in him and then leaking out a bit when Chanyeol finally pulls off him.  
  
Jongin is sore, but pleasantly so as Chanyeol cleans him up with first a cloth and then his tongue and lips, healing the bruises and scratches he left on Jongin’s delicate skin. “Get some sleep,” Chanyeol tells him when he’s finished and they’re cuddled up under the covers. He kisses Jongin goodnight, nothing more than the sweet press of their lips together and Jongin melts in his arms.  
  
Tomorrow’s going to be another day of Jongin practicing magic and then, when he’s ready for it, together they’ll spend a few days gathering another list of ingredients. This time for a potion that gives eternal life and youth so that Jongin can, not only stay with Chanyeol for the rest of his life, but for eternity as well.


End file.
